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Pre post natal depression

2018-10-13

Becoming a mother is a quite happy and exciting time. Lately, with the new government policy many women also choose to experience such experience again for the second time.  

Pregnancy supposed to be happiest time in woman’s life. However, for some women might become the time of confusion, fear, anxiety, and depression. These symptoms could be due to pre-existing psychological issues and to some extent might be due to hormonal changes. 

There may be many questions or wishes on pregnant women’s mind about her future child. 
Questions such as:
What if something goes wrong? Will it be boy or girl? 
Which hospital to deliver the baby, is it a safe and a good hospital? 
Delivery expenses? 
Breast-feed or milk powder? How to raise him? 
Who will take care of him when I back to work?
 How to manage work and raising him? 
List of future expenses? Good school, Hu kao, Beijing or another city ?  
Wish him to be perfect child and in future can find a good job
 Raising him without family support (if mother is not from Beijing and or not from the same town..) 
The above list is a mixture of positive and negative stressors. If pregnant woman is not emotionally balanced will have difficulties coping with these issues which might affect her emotion, her health and health of her fetus and later her newborn baby. 

About 14 to 23% of women might have symptoms of depression during pregnancy. Mothers with prenatal depression might also have high risk of developing another emotional problem after delivery called postnatal depression and its negative affect on her and health of newborn.
Symptoms of prenatal depression might be different in every woman. However, the most common ones are persistent sadness, difficulty concentrating, Sleeping problem, Loss of enjoyment in life activities, thought of helplessness or hopelessness, feel lonely, and many more. 

Prenatal depression triggered by different factors such as woman’s prior emotional problems such as anxiety or depression, family or marital problem, Family or personal history of depression, lack of family support, previous miscarriage, past complications of pregnancy etc. 
Research shows that newborn’s biochemistry profile is highly similar to his mother. Therefore any chemical changes in mother’s body due to prenatal depression will enter fetus and will affect negatively fetus and the newborn. Some of the risks of prenatal depression might include, problem with delivery or might affect fetus brain development, premature birth, low birth weight, excessive crying, high chance of admission of newborn to neonatal care, developmental delay, mother’s gestational diabetes, baby cry more, later on new born might have problems with learning ability/language, behavior problem, low intelligence, and other developmental disorders.
After child delivery, women with postnatal depression can develop symptoms including sadness and tearfulness, Irritability, anxiety, panic, becoming indifference to baby, Inability to enjoy life and at times even thought of harming herself or the baby 

Father also can develop postnatal depression. His symptoms might include: Irritability, aggressiveness, poor concentration, anxious, sleeping problem and feelings of being abandoned by his wife since all her attention suddenly are given to the newborn. 
Father’s participation in parenting during the first year of a child’s life and specially after age 3 is very important for children’s behavior, building self confidence, social and emotional development. Therefore, father’s postnatal depression could also affect newborn emotionally in many negative ways. 
There are things mother can do to overcome pre and post natal depression. 
- Try to think positive and throw away the negative ones
-Find your illogical thoughts and replace them with logical ones.
-Be realistic in raising your child.
. Get lots of sun, Exercise, Swimming, walking.
.Have enough sleep  
. Don’t drink alcohol
. Talk and spend more time with your husband
If cannot cope see a clinical Psychologist. Depression in pregnancy can be treated and managed by Clinical Psychological using psychotherapy without use of any medicine 
Psychological treatment such as Cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) conducted by psychologist is very effective for treatment of Pre and Postnatal depression in mothers and postnatal depression in fathers in a short time. 
Child’s first and most important need is to have a happy parents with harmonious relationship. If your marriage or relationship with your spouse has difficulty seek help from clinical psychologist helping your marriage by family/marriage therapy.
The bottom line is that in order to raise a psychological healthy child, as couples decide to have a child, they need to look at themselves and their relationship and if need help seek psychological treatment to build up a happy and peaceful family for themselves and new born before pregnancy. 

I often see women or couple prior to pregnancy need help to stabilize their emotional difficulties prior to pregnancy or just want to have a psychological assessment to rule out depression, anxiety or other emotional difficulties before having a child.

If you need my help or wish to have “woman prenatal psychological assessment” and or “prenatal couple psychological assessment” before pregnancy you can contact me at IMC…..

Good luck in journey of motherhood and parenthood

Dr.Mike